Maybe you’ve never been the dinner and a movie type. Or maybe flowers, candies and a card just won’t cut it this year.

For whatever reason you’re searching beyond the been-there-done-that romantic scenario this Valentine’s Day, rest assured that there are other ways to spread the love.

For the young at heart, try a fun activity like ice skating to the tune of popular love songs at Blue Cross RiverRink on Columbus Boulevard at Market Street in Philadelphia. Sweetheart Skates sessions will be held Feb. 14, from 6 to 8 p.m. and 8:30 to 10:30 p.m. Tickets are $20 per person (admission and skate rental, plus a complimentary red flower and free sweetheart photo keepsake), and may be purchased in advance. For information, email riverrink@delawareriverwaterfrontcorp.com or visit riverrink.com.

And that’s just one idea. Can’t get a babysitter? Or maybe you’re in search of something the whole family can do together. There’s something for you. Want to go out with friends and laugh in the face of love and relationships past? There’s something for you, too. Still haven’t found that perfectly unusual, off-the-beaten path way to celebrate love? Read on, and remember to think outside of the chocolate box this Feb. 14.

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HISTORY AND HAUNTING TALES

Experience love behind bars

Couples who’d like to “celebrate love in the cellblocks” should join one of the Winter Adventure Tours offered at Eastern State Penitentiary from Feb. 14 to 17, when visitors can experience the prison’s 142-year history with an added focus on love stories.

“One story demonstrates how two inmates, Elizabeth Velora Elwell and Albert Green Jackson, wrote letters to each other and had secret meetings in a cold cellar while both were prisoners at Eastern State in 1862. In another, inmate Sydney Ware, serving a life sentence for murder, married Ella M. Hershey, a society woman who helped secure his pardon, in 1913,” press materials state.

The one-hour tours, each led by an expert guide, will be conducted Feb. 14 and 15 at 10 a.m., noon, 2 p.m., 3 p.m. and 4 p.m.; and Feb. 16 and 17 at every hour from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Special admission (buy one $12 adult ticket plus service fee, get one free) is available for couples who purchase tickets in advance at easternstate.org/tickets. Tickets are also available at the door, subject to availability.

Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site is located at 2027 Fairmount Ave., Philadelphia. For more information, call 215-236-3300.

Hold hands, hear a ghost story

The Ghost Tour of Philadelphia will resurrect the popular Valentine’s Ghost Tour of Society Hill on Feb. 14, 15 and 16. According to press materials, the event promises “an entertaining evening of haunting love stories and the ghosts they leave behind at two beautiful mansions and a historic cemetery.”

The 75-minute candlelight walking tour includes entry to two historic Society Hill mansions, the Powel House and the Physick House, said to be haunted by the spirits of former inhabitants and visitors, and Old Pine Cemetery, where some 3,000 18th and 19th century Philadelphians are buried.

“The uniqueness of the event intrigues a lot of people,” organizer Alanna Reeser said. “This is the fourth year that we have offered the Valentine’s Ghost Tour, and we’ve found it’s more than just ghost stories that draw people.

“It’s the idea of these timeless, classic love stories in a beautiful setting in Society Hill. It’s the unexpected little treats that surprise and delight our guests, romantics and skeptics alike.

“Each year we try something a little different, whether it’s adding new love stories that we’ve uncovered, or lovely historic mansions and cemeteries. On this year’s tour, people will visit two beautifully restored colonial-era mansions and a historic churchyard, and hear stories of the people who lived, loved and died there.

“At the Powel House, we share the story of Samuel Powel, who was Philadelphia’s last mayor under colonial rule and first mayor under the new Republic, and his wife Elizabeth, who traveled in the most fashionable circles of her time. If houses have a soul, this one has experienced the full spectrum of love and its many incarnations: the romantic love of a husband and wife, the tragic love of a mother mourning her children, the forbidden love of a close friendship and the misplaced love of betrayal and scandal.

“All of the stories on the tour are memorable; some are inspiring, some disturbing and some filled with tantalizing mystery. Everyone appreciates a good love story, and what better way to get in the mood for Valentine’s Day?”

Tickets for the Valentine’s Ghost Tour are $20 per person, available by calling 215-413-1997 or visiting www.ghosttour.com.

Snuggle in a cemetery

A Valentine’s tour and reception, “Til Death Do Us Part: The Love Stories of Laurel Hill,” invites couples to mark the “spirit” of Valentine’s Day this Saturday at the historic cemetery, where visitors will learn about a woman’s “symbolic, final gesture and other tales of love as varied as the souls from which they transpired,” according to press materials.

“Some love is eternal; some love ends; and some love ends badly. Devotion, passion and faith prove to sway destinies as much as greed, lust and betrayal. Those stories that do not warm your own heart will entertain and tantalize instead.”

Free parking is available in the lot across the street from the Gatehouse.

The tour will conclude with a fireside reception featuring wine, hot chocolate and hors d’oeuvres.

Cost is $20 per person; $18 for students and seniors and $17 for members. Advance registration is requested; call 215-228-8200 or visit thelaurelhillcemetery.org.

THE ARTS

Laugh at love

Spend the evening of Feb. 14 listening to storytellers share real-life tales of “love lost, sweet and sad, hilarious and ridiculous,” as First Person Arts Story Slam presents the Ex-Files StorySlam at World Café Live.

“A StorySlam is an invitation to share five minutes of your life in a room full of people who appreciate a well-told tale. Come and lend an ear, or share an experience.”

Tickets are $11 (plus processing fees). For more information, visit worldcafelive.com or firstpersonarts.org.

Board a love train

The City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program, SEPTA and Wired 96.5 radio present Love Train Tour & Reception on Sunday from 2 to 5 p.m. The annual tour will depart from 1234 Market St., Philadelphia. After, all attendees are invited to a “Singles Looking to Mingle with Tingle” event at SEPTA headquarters, with radio personality Steve Tingle.

A specially chartered SEPTA train bursting with Valentine’s Day decorations will tour Mural Arts’ A Love Letter for You Project, a series of rooftop murals painted by artist Steve Powers that can be seen from the Market-Frankford El. A guide will share stories about the murals and the artist’s vision, and provide a history of the program.

Tickets are $25 per person and can be purchased online at muralarts.org or by calling 215-925-3633, ext. 13.

FOOD AND WINE

Show some puppy love

Dog lovers and their sweetheart pups are invited to celebrate Valentine’s Day in Boyertown. Dog owners can dine at Sweet Beginnings, a BYOB restaurant located at 43 East Philadelphia Ave., while their canine friends enjoy playtime at Joe Paws Dog Bakery, 18 S. Reading Ave., under the supervision of GiGi’s at Home Pet Care.

Dogs weighing less than 40 pounds are invited to play at the bakery from 5 to 7 p.m., while dogs 40 pounds and over may play during the 7 to 9 p.m. time slot. Dogs must be registered in advance, and a $10 admission fee per pet includes light snacks during playtime. Pet owners may pre-order Valentine’s Day Doggie Snack Packs to be picked up Feb. 13 or 14.

Sweet Beginnings will offer a menu for sweethearts of all ages, with specialties including grilled New York strip steak, seafood lasagna, chicken breast parmesan, and homemade fettuccini alfredo, along with several desserts. Seatings will be available from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m.; reservations are strongly recommended.

Joe Paws Dog Bakery: 610-369-2523; JoePawsonline.com

GiGi’s at Home Pet Care: 610-367-6990; gigipetcare.com

Sweet Beginnings Restaurant and Catering: 610-369-0649

Satisfy your sweet tooth

Wine and chocolate samplings will be offered at Chaddsford Winery, 632 Baltimore Pike, Chadds Ford, this Saturday and Sunday and Feb. 16, 17, 23 and 24, from noon to 6 p.m. A $14 heart shaped box of chocolate treats will be sold and can be enjoyed during the tasting or with a glass of wine in the cellar.

Visitors will be provided with written guides on pairing and information on the chocolates. Reservations are not required. For more information, visit chaddsford.com.

FAMILY FUN

Visit wild soul mates

This Saturday and Sunday, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., is Wild at Heart Weekend at the Philadelphia Zoo, a family-friendly, self-guided “Love tour” of famous couples at the zoo. Visitors will enjoy free, orangutan-friendly candy donated by MARS, and watch as animals receive special treats from their keepers. Also, participate in a “Kiss Squeak” contest, mimicking the sounds of wild orangutans.

Local bakeries will compete in a 3D novelty cake decorating contest of Valentine’s-themed cakes on Saturday, between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., in the Rare Animal Conservation Center. Vote for the best cake in person on Saturday and Sunday or online until Feb. 13th at facebook.com/philadelphiazoo. A winner will be announced on Valentine’s Day through the zoo’s website and social media outlets.

Make a monkey happy

Elmwood Park Zoo invites guests to create special Valentine crafts for animals on Feb. 16 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The crafts will look, taste, smell, or feel special in order to excite the senses of the zoo’s furry and feathered family members.

The event will include a live animal show at 11:30 a.m., and a children’s dance party from noon to 2 p.m. featuring DJ A-Run, in the Canopy Gardens Hall. A limited food menu also will be available for purchase.

This event is free with regular zoo admission. For more information, contact Guest Services at 610-277-3825, ext. 241 or ext. 275.